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Orbitals
Orbital Habitats or simply Orbitals or Habitats 'are a variety of human settlements in space that are not confined to the surface of a large planet or moon. Most space colonies were constructed from asteroids or comets from the Asteroid Belt and the Kuiper Belt, the first being mining colonies constructed in the early 2020s. As of 2160 space colonies number in the thousands, from small habitats to the Mexican Orbitals. Types Orbitals Orbitals were the first colonies, built out of Near Earth Asteroids and used either as mining or manufacturing satellites. At present, the largest orbital colonies are Mexico's Lagrangian Orbitals, which are as large as the larger O'Neil Ships. Orbitals are used primarily for processing space-based resources, though Mexico's have been largely converted into military installations since their initial creation as off-world economic zones. Most reside near Earth, and are largely used for manufacturing, research, and military purposes. Only a handful are self contained communities, the largest by far are Mexico's Lagrangian colonies, while most of those the US uses are either farmworlds, or luxury worlds for the super-rich (the latter are some of the only colonies that do not participate in the ITC and are still technically part of territories on Earth.) The rest are used for trade, mining, and infrastructure care and maintenance. Outside of Earth, there are orbitals that serve these purposes as well, but the overwhelming majority are gas mining stations in the outer planets. 'Ahuiateteo Orbitals Main article: Mexican Vacuum Command From 2112 to 2137, Mexico operated five Orbitals that served as both permanent space colonies, and military instillations. These habitats, were positioned at Earth-Luna Lagrangian points L3, L4 and L5, and Earth-Sol points L1 and L2. The stations in Earth-Luna Lagrangian points were intentionally placed near high value American targets to shadow the American space fleet. Each station measured 50km in length, and while not the largest O'Neil cylinders ever built, they were far and away the largest stations placed in a permanent position around Earth. The Mexican orbitals were outfitted with multiple super-mass drivers capable of sending a single projectile or clusters of projectiles to Earth with extreme precision. This made it possible for Mexico to have an orbital strike capability without needing to launch a large cluster of platforms. The Ahuiateteo orbitals also acted as shipyards and docks for the Mexican space fleet, and held a compliment of Vacuum commandos, all permanently stationed on the colonies for rapid response against the American Space Force. These stations would remain a threat through the Third Mexican War, and the last battle in space would be fought securing the command orbital at Earth-Solar L1 in 2137. After the war, these spacecraft were converted for colony transport to Venus and the outer planets. O'Neil Ships Main article: O'Neil Ships The largest of these colonies are the O'Neil ships that travel along the Interplanetary Transport Network ferrying cargo and passengers between the major colony worlds. Platforms Platforms are relatively small colonies that serve as the counterweights and harbors for Space Elevators. The largest Platform in the system is the New Richmond Starport. Category:Technology